2024 Friends of Montefiore Community Woodland Annual Report
Friends of Montefiore Community Woodland 2024
Annual Report from the Committee
The Friends of Montefiore Woodland Group is now in its thirteenth year and the Woodland continues to provide a tranquil green space to be enjoyed by the community and various species of wildlife. It is a little haven for birds, squirrels, foxes, bats and hedgehogs.
We continue in our efforts to improve the wildflower meadow. Last year we bought and planted many native wildflower plants into the meadow with some degree of success. The weather was unusually dry and warm at that time. This year we bought 88 plants which Sue and Leigh planted out at our last work party. So far there has been significant rainfall so hopefully a better result. At the same time Peter Atherall bought and planted out 250 native bluebell bulbs but unfortunately they were dug up and many destroyed. We don’t know what the cause of this was but it has been suggested to me that foxes are prone to dig up bulbs and eat them. Earlier in the year, Trevor and Lin also kindly donated and planted some Bluebells.
The increased variety of plants has attracted a greater variety and number of butterflies and pollinating insects. Thank you to Peter for advising and keeping a record of all plant species in the Woodland as well as listing the food sources of the various butterfly species.
Sue Smith continued with the weekly butterfly transect from April to September and the Friends group also participated in the national Butterfly count, recording 9 different butterfly species on the day.
Again we participated in the Big Garden Bird count, recording 11 different bird species on that day. New bird boxes have been installed and occupancy is being monitored by Sue. Thanks to Pat for feeding the birds throughout the winter.
Bat walks on summer evenings were continued and we look forward to doing the same in the summer months.
Full details of plants, birds and butterflies recorded in the Woodland can be seen on our website.www.montefiorewoodland.org.uk/. Well worth a look, you will be amazed.
The monthly volunteer work parties continue to be enjoyed and we have been very pleased to welcome some new helpers during the year to assist with various tasks.
The Hornbeam tree we planted to mark the King’s coronation appears to be thriving as does the newly planted native hedge at the perimeter of the wildflower meadow.
The fight against the brambles, ivy and invasive alexander ensure that there is always work to be done in the Woodland.
Several loads of bark chippings delivered to the Woodland have been spread along the pathways which not only make the pathways safer for users but also greatly improve the general appearance. Thank you to Dave Welch for overseeing as well as carrying out much of the work.
Another success is the repointing of the flint boundary wall which we have long petitioned to be done. Hopefully this will ensure that the wall continues to stand for another hundred years.
Ramsgate Town Council have taken over responsibility and management of the larger trees on the site. Their survey showed that several need to be removed due to disease and for safety reasons. We were extremely grateful to the council for the purchase of more tools and equipment and for the delivery of a container which ensures that the tools can be readily available to volunteers at all times. We hope to get it painted before too long as it is a bit of an eyesore at the moment.
Sue and Peter Smith continue to do an excellent job in keeping the website up to date and looking good. In addition the face book presence is useful for announcing current events and sharing information on wildlife issues.
We are very grateful for the donations received from supporters this year including regular payments from our treasurer Jeffery Frampton who does an excellent job in managing our finances.
We are pleased to continue our links with the Montefiore Heritage Group.
We also thank the Emporium cafe for the use of this room for our AGM meeting.
Most of all we must thank our committee members and the volunteers who give their time and effort to maintaining and improving the Montefiore Woodland.
Lisa Hunt Chair
Friends of Montefiore Woodland
